Tannery Pond to show Charlie Chaplin silent films

North Creek  The Tannery Pond Community Center will be showing a popular Charlie Chaplin silent film from the 1920s on Oct. 23 in the old style, with an accompanist playing the piano.

The film — “The Kid” — dates to 1921, during Chaplin’s heydays in Hollywood. The story finds Chaplin’s character, the little Tramp, adopting and raising a child, played by 4-year-old Jackie Coogan. It was groundbreaking, combining comedy and drama, and was Chaplin’s first fully formed feature-length movie. Its huge success opened the doors for Keaton, Lloyd and others to move out of short comedies.

“The Kid” will be shown with Chaplin’s short 1918 comedy, “A Dog’s Life,” and will be accompanied live on piano by Ben Model, one of the country’s leading silent film accompanists who has been composing and improvising musical scores for silent films for 30 years. Model accompanies silents regularly at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City and the Library of Congress, and his recorded scores can be heard on numerous DVD/Blu-Ray releases and on Turner Classic Movies. He is the producer and co-founder of The Silent Clowns Film Series, now in its 15th season in New York City. Model has composed ensemble scores for films by Chaplin, Keaton and Lloyd are performed around the U.S. every year by orchestras and by concert bands.

The silent films will be shown at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 23 at the Tannery Pond Community Center. The cost is $10/adults, $5/students and free/children under 12.

Model will also be giving a free performance for Johnsburg Central School students in grades 5-8 at the Tannery Pond Community Center at 1:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 24. The event is supported by the town of Johnsburg Occupancy Tax funds.